posted at 10:41 pm on July 8, 2014 by Allahpundit

“Gov. Perry is pleased that President Obama has accepted his invitation to discuss the humanitarian and national security crises along our southern border, and he looks forward to meeting with the president tomorrow,” spokeswoman Lucy Nashed wrote in an email to POLITICO. Nashed said that the meeting will be in Dallas…

“The president would welcome a meeting with you while he is in Texas,” Jarrett wrote in a letter to Perry. She also reiterated the Obama administration’s commitment to addressing the “urgent humanitarian situation” along the border.

But Hoyer added that the trip would be merely a photo-op to show Obama visited.

“But he is very concerned. He’s indicated that. Going to the border, I don’t want to sound too cynical, [would be] a photo-op. The president has been spending a lot of time and effort,” Hoyer said. “Jeh Johnson, [the Homeland Security] secretary, has gone down there, the vice president went down to Central America. It’s clear the administration is very, very engaged.”

***

It’s certainly in part a political decision, one meant to avoid taking ownership of a difficult issue on which the White House would prefer to share blame. But it’s also one that will inflame Obama’s critics on both the right and left who say the administration has been too passive in response to the thousands of young border-crossers swamping U.S. detention facilities.

If Obama goes, his presence there would give both liberal and conservative critics further ammunition as they argue Obama’s policies are to blame for the influx. It might even make it more difficult for Obama to marshal public support for any executive actions he may soon take to reform current federal immigration rules. At the same time, being seen at a detention facility among children that face deportation could make him appear uncaring.

***

Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, is worried President Obama’s decision to not visit the U.S-Mexico border while he’s in Texas this week will become his “Katrina moment.”

“I’m sure that President Bush thought the same thing, that he could just look at everything from up in the sky, and then he owned it after a long time,” Cuellar said Monday in a Fox News interview with Neil Cavuto. “So I hope this doesn’t become the Katrina moment for President Obama, saying that he doesn’t need to come to the border. He should come down.”

***

Today President Obama says he needs $3.7 billion from Congress to handle the crisis his lawless policies are creating. Amazingly, the funding request further advertises his administration’s amnesty efforts and our fraud-riddled asylum programs, while explicitly omitting any request for expedited deportation authority. The request is also not paid for. The administration wants to borrow every penny.

President Obama has yielded to the demands of open borders groups, to whom he pledged amnesty in 2008. He has dramatically abandoned his lawful duty to the American people. Immigration enforcement for the world’s most powerful nation is now held hostage by a small band of radical immigration activists. That is why the administration still refuses to deliver the crucial message necessary to halt this flow: if you attempt to cross our border illegally, you will be apprehended and deported.

“Through no fault of their own, they are caught in political crossfire,” Beck said of the children. “And while we continue to put pressure on Washington and change its course of lawlessness, we must also help. It is not either, or. It is both. We have to be active in the political game, and we must open our hearts.”…

“Everybody is telling me I’m seeing subscriptions down; I’m seeing Mercury One donations down,” Beck said, growing emotional. “I’m getting violent emails from people who say I’ve ‘betrayed the Republic.’ Whatever. I’ve never taken a position more deadly to my career than this — and I have never, ever taken a position that is more right than this.”

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Good morning ladies and gents. Everybody left early last night. I haven’t seen much news yet. Thanks for the update Canopfor. I hope Canada is updating their border security. Our mess is going to keep moving north.

Asher’s Baking Company faces court for refusing order for gay marriage cake

The image the customer wanted on the cake

By Steven Alexander – 08 July 2014
**********************************

A bakery owned by a Christian family is facing legal action after it declined to make a cake printed with a message supporting gay marriage.

The Equality Commission has told the owner of Asher’s Baking Company that it has broken the law by refusing to bake a cake for a member of a gay rights group.

Daniel McArthur (24), general manager at the Newtownabbey company which has been running since 1992 and employs 62 people, said Asher’s had been founded by Christians, and the current directors are Christians.

“That means that we run our business according to Christian values and beliefs, according to what the Bible teaches. It means for example that we don’t open on Sundays, that we trade openly and honestly with people,” he said.

Mr McArthur said even the company’s name was Biblical, as Asher was one of the 12 tribes of Israel. “It was a tribe that had gifted bakers,” he added.

He said a customer had placed an order for a “celebration cake” at Asher’s Belfast bakery.

LGBT activist Gareth Lee had asked for the cake to include a slogan that said ‘support gay marriage’ along with a picture of Bert and Ernie from Sesame Street, and the logo of the Queerspace organisation.

Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK where gay marriage has not been legalised.

The order was taken on a Friday and referred to the company directors.

VIDEO:

“We thought that this order was at odds with our beliefs. It certainly was in contradiction of what the Bible teaches,” Mr McArthur said. “I feel if we don’t take a stand with this case, then how can we stand up against it further down the line?”

The customer was informed that the order could not be taken on the Monday. Mr Lee was given a refund, but a few weeks later, Asher’s received a letter from the Equality Commission accusing it of discriminating against Mr Lee on the grounds of sexual orientation.

The letter asked the company to propose how it intended to remedy the situation and said it would pursue legal action if there was no response within seven days.

Mr McArthur contacted the Christian Institute for legal support. Its director, Colin Hart, said: “All the McArthurs want is to run their bakery according to their Christian beliefs. There won’t be many situations where they need to turn down an order but this is obviously one of them. No-one should be forced to use their creative skills to promote a cause which goes against their consciences.“

Good morning ladies and gents. Everybody left early last night. I haven’t seen much news yet. Thanks for the update Canopfor. I hope Canada is updating their border security. Our mess is going to keep moving north.

crankyoldlady on July 9, 2014 at 5:46 AM

COL: Good Morning, our US/CAN Border are on their toes,
I’ve been hauled in a few times,…so I can imagine
a wayward fence hopper, would be jailed, for Illegal
entry for trying to
enter either US or Canadian Border side!!–:)

The Southern US Border is not Enforcing the Law,
and the Hopey Administration has, a LAW STAND DOWN
Order!!!!

Why does this mythical Katrina moment come from. There was something like 1600 helicopter rescues, more than any in history…
wait, I got that from Haley Barbour and who can trust that fat f*ck anymore?

chuck Todd says wh is stubborn and wont be bullied into going to border they think they have compromised by talking with Perry and attending a round table so its all good see he cares

cmsinaz on July 9, 2014 at 6:37 AM

If that is what the White House thinks, good! A meet-and-greet 500 miles away from the border will not satisfy the rat-eared wonder’s critics. He remains aloof and unconcerned about the disease-ridden parasites that his administration is allowing into the country. The upcoming pandemic will be his fault and those who are currently whining that the parasites have a right to be here.

Why does this mythical Katrina moment come from. There was something like 1600 helicopter rescues, more than any in history…
wait, I got that from Haley Barbour and who can trust that fat f*ck anymore?

Lonetown on July 9, 2014 at 6:41 AM

To be fair, Barbour did a credible job as governor during post-Katrina recovery.

It’s this whole buying the votes of black folk and then pretending that the GOP primary was above the political fray that disgusts me.

Nearing hour #3 of this @HouseVetAffairs hearing, we’re still on panel #1. Special Council and VA reps still scheduled to testify.
=================================================================

health care
56m

Veterans Affairs whistleblower Dr. Katherine Mitchell testifies at House committee hearing that physicians should not get jobs at Veterans Affairs until problems are fixed – @vmontorocspan
End of alert
=============

Hey! In other news, today C. Ray Nagin gets sentenced for being the most corrupt mayor of New Orleans since the last mayor! Nagin’s family is whining about the injustice of sending C. Ray up the river for 20 years- they claim he was framed and the only thing he was guilty of is being too trusting. I lived in New Orleans during the Nagin years, he was as corrupt as they come.

“What happened in Mississippi was appalling. Primaries are always rough and tumble, but the conduct of the Washington, D.C., machine in the Mississippi runoff was incredibly disappointing.” – Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX)

I’ve lived in New Orleans twice. First time in the late 90s I was living in Slidell (though the address was actually Pearl River). Marc Morial was mayor then and he did a credible job within the expected corruption and cronyism. Second time I lived in the city itself (Algiers Point) with Nagin and you could see the corruption in every single city function.

You’re closer to this story than most at HA and it clearly hasn’t kept the national media’s attention. But I will say this. I’m less upset at the outcome than am about Cochran is running around pretending that he didn’t engage in sleazy tactics to secure the election and his faux moral outrage that anybody would question how he “won.” I’m also sick of the MS establishment GOP saying that McDaniel has a long career ahead of him so long as he shuts up and cedes this primary to Cochran.